I wrote sometime back that one of my favorite Tacoma love songs was "Commitment Chant" by Alexander and the Optimistics, AKA local artist Sean Alexander. A simple line, repeated over and over atop a chugging beat box, it kind of perfectly summed up the fear and sadness that come with loving someone with all of your being. "Commitment Chant" is hard to find, his other songs impossible to find. I think Alexander likes it that way. Abandoning his old moniker in favor of Sad Mr. Robert Another Coward of Love, Alexander will be offering a rare performance at The New Frontier on Friday. His voice is warbly, cracked and soulful; his lyrics are strange and intimate. On stage, I anticipate a beautiful train wreck. 

[The New Frontier Lounge, with Humble Cub, Check Please, Tallest Tree, 9 p.m., cover TBA, 301 E. 25th St, Tacoma, 253.572.4020]